How to Make Yotam Ottolenghi's Eggplant with Buttermilk Sauce

We’ve never seen such a suave chef squeal–seriously, squeal–as Yotam Ottolenghi did when one of us said, “You know, I just don’t tend to cook eggplant at home.”

“But it’s so versatile,” Ottolenghi cried, defending his beloved purple, oval-shaped nightshade. “You can roast it, or you can char it and scoop out the insides. It absorbs flavor like a sponge!”

And so the chef and co-owner of four Ottolenghi restaurants in London proceeded to show us one way to cook eggplant, using a recipe from his new cookbook, Plenty. (The cover recipe, actually–see below for proof.) And now we’re sharing it with you.